1. Field of the Invention
The invention generally relates to a single pass sequencer and, in particular, to a system and method for sequencing mail pieces in delivery sequence in a single pass system.
2. Background Description
The delivery of mail such as catalogs, products, advertisements and a host of other articles have increased exponentially over the years. These mail pieces are known to be critical to commerce and the underlying economy. It is thus important to commerce and the underlying economy to provide efficient delivery of such mail in both a cost effective and time efficient manner. This includes, for example, arranging randomly deposited mail pieces into a sequential delivery order for delivery to a destination point. By sorting the mail in a sequential order based on destination point, the delivery of mail and other articles can be provided in an orderly and effective manner.
But, the sorting of mail is a very complex, time consuming task. In general, the sorting of mail is processed though many stages, including back end processes, which sort or sequence the mail in delivery order sequence. These processes can either be manual or automated, depending on a host of factors such as, for example, the mail sorting facility, the type of mail to be sorted such as packages, flats, letter and the like.
In general, however, most modem facilities have become automated to a far extent. These automation technologies include, amongst others, letter sorters, parcel sorters, advanced tray conveyors, flat sorters and the like. But, problems still exist using these technologies. For example, currently, it is known to sequence letters using a mail sorter based on, for example, a two pass system.
More specifically, in current sorting processes, a two pass system is used as one method for sorting mail based on delivery destination. In this known process, a multiple pass process of each piece of mail is provided for sorting the mail; that is, the mail pieces, for future delivery, are fed through a feeder twice for sorting purposes. In general, the two pass system requires a first pass for addresses to be read by an optical character reader and assigned a label or destination code. Once the mail pieces are assigned a label or destination code, they are then fed to bins based on one of the numbers of the destination code. The mail pieces are then fed through the feeder a second time, scanned, and sorted based on the second number of the destination code. It is the use of the second number which completes the basis for sorting the mail pieces based on delivery or destination order.
The two pass system may present some shortcomings. For example, the mail pieces are fed through the feeder twice, which may increase the damage to the mail pieces. Second, known optical recognition systems typically have a reliability of approximately 70%; however, by having to read the mail pieces twice, the rate is multiplied by itself dramatically reducing the read rate and thus requiring more manual operations. That is, the read rate is decreased and an operator may have to manually read the destination codes and manually sort the mail when the scanner is unable to accurately read the destination code, address or other information associated with the mail pieces two consecutive times. Additionally, bar code labeling and additional sorting steps involves additional processing time and sorting machine overhead as well as additional operator involvement. This all leads to added costs and processing times.
Lastly, it is known that such systems are typically capable of only processing one type of mail piece, at a time. For example, letters and flats cannot be processed simultaneously. This, again, increases overall overhead costs, processing times and leads to inefficient use of resources.
The invention is designed to overcome one or more of the above shortcomings.